Large capacity walled enclosures of all natures are found in commerce. A particularly prevalent walled enclosure which is found on the nation's roadways is the trailer component of a tractor-trailer. The trailers are rather basic in their design. They have a bed frame on which are mounted a minimum of two wheels and an axle. Eight or more wheels on a trailer is not unusual. The bed frame further has corner posts and sidewall posts extending from the bed frame to a top rail. Multiple panels are secured to the posts to enclose an area used for transporting all types of cargo.
Panels used in forming the trailer sidewalls are typically about four feet in width and anywhere from five feet to ten feet in height. The panels must be rigid and have sufficient strength to withstand the normal forces of weather as well as accidental bumpings encountered in cargo loading and unloading operations. They are preferably light-weight so that as much cargo can be transported given tractor-trailer size and weight limitations imposed by state and federal departments of commerce. Sheet metals with framing posts have been used. More commonly, the panels have a sandwich configuration of a solid or foamed polymeric core with metal claddings. The metal typically is steel or aluminum. The panels are simply attached to posts on the trailer's frame, much as drywall is attached to studs in a house to create an enclosed walled area. Seams created by joining together two panels must be weather-tight.
Trucks and vans are also built with an integral walled enclosure for cargo. The walled enclosure is similar to that of a trailer, requiring at least two panels to form a sidewall.
Other examples of walled enclosures include walk-in storage boxes for furniture and the like, emergency shelters, mobile homes, cargo trailers, medical testing facilities, satellite television link-up vans, and livestock trailers. While the walled enclosures are made in various configurations, all have a floor, ceiling, and sidewalls. A common feature of the enclosures is a sidewall panel. In most instances, one or more panels are attached to framing to create the enclosure.
A disadvantage of known panels for large capacity walled enclosures is that many require intermediate support posts. The posts are needed to support and securely hold the panels in place. The posts are typically formed steel or extruded aluminum. They necessarily add to the enclosure's cost and weight. Further, they must be precisely machined to receive panel attaching means.
There has now been developed a panel with an edge designed for building sidewalls of a walled enclosure without the need for intermediate sidewall posts. The panels are economically produced and efficiently installed. The resultant sidewall of the enclosure consisting of the panels has the requisite rigidity and strength demanded of industry acceptable large capacity walled enclosures.